The following is an excerpt from my novel Germania, originally published in 2008 by Simon & Schuster, now newly available on Kindle (buy it here).
Albert Speer |
As he was working his way through a cup of tea, he heard agitated footsteps running up the corridor toward him. He started to feel a sense of dread. It was the captain of the honor guard, which had been assigned to him for security.
“Herr Reichsminister, we have an emergency!”
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“The American Army is here, demanding to see you.”
“What?”
“The Americans, your Excellency! There must be twenty of them. They’ve come in Jeeps.”
“In Jeeps? But what do they want? Are you sure they’re not looking for Himmler?”
“No, your Excellency. They say they want you. Reichsminister for War Production Albert Speer. Do you want my men to shoot at them?”
“No, absolutely not. Tell them to wait. I must get dressed first.”
He went back to his room and found his best gray suit. Then he selected a French tie and put it on. He took a glimpse in the mirror and thought to himself that he looked pretty good.
Schloss Glucksburg |
Two very tall men stood together. One looked like a hawk, the other like an enormous owl. Next to them was a much shorter man who, by his sheer proximity to them, looked like a hedgehog.
“Good Morning, Herr Speer,” said the owl. “I hope you don’t mind us dropping in like this, but we were making everybody nervous at the Marineschule.” They grinned good-naturedly at Speer.
“We’ve flown in from Frankfurt this morning to interview you,” said the hawk. “Do you have some time to spare?”
John Kenneth Galbraith |
Finally the man pointed to his tall colleagues, “This is George Ball, this is Ken Galbraith and I’m Paul Nitze.”
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